Ron Leshem

Ron Leshem
רון לשם
Ron Leshem
Leshem at the 2006 Sapir Prize
Born1976 (age 49–50)
Tel-Aviv, Israel[1]
Occupations
Years active1998–present
Children2

Ron Leshem (Hebrew: רון לשם) is an Israeli American screenwriter, producer, and author. He is an executive producer of Euphoria, which was based on the Israeli television series he co-created and co-wrote in 2012. His first film as a screenwriter, Beaufort, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best International Feature Film and based on his novel of the same name that received the Sapir Prize in 2006.[2]

Leshem has worked on television series including No Man's Land, Valley of Tears, and The Gordin Cell, and the film Incitement.

Career

Initial television work and journalism

By age 15, Leshem was working in the television industry on educational and youth programming as a researcher and editing coordinator. He helped to develop Zombit, a computer program that became a television show about technology and the internet. Leshem was also a journalist for Ma'ariv La'noar at this time.[3]

He worked as a news editor at Yediot Ahronot in 1998 and became the head of the reporters' department two years later. During those years, he also worked as a magazine writer publishing investigative reports about Israel's prison system and animal testing, conducting interviews with Palestinian figures and politicians as well as what was going on within Palestinian territories.[4]

Leshem was appointed deputy editor-in-chief and head of the news division at Maariv in 2001. He also founded the newspaper's website.[3][5]

Television production and adaptation of Euphoria

Leshem transitioned from print media to television in 2005.[6] From 2006 to 2009, he worked in content development for Keshet Broadcasting, where he became chief of content and programming at the network. Leshem managed both its reality/entertainment/documentary and drama divisions. Israeli television series he was involved with include Arab Labor, the A-word, Beauty and the Baker, False Flag and Prisoners of War, which was later adapted into the American series Homeland.[7]

In 2011, Leshem co-created and co-wrote his first original drama series, The Gordin Cell, which was about a Russian spy family pressured by their Moscow handlers to recruit their young son.[8] It received multiple nominations at the Awards of the Israeli Television Academy. The series was sold for adaptation to NBC, first by Peter Berg and later by George Nolfi. Allegiance aired on NBC in 2015 and was canceled after one season.[7]

He co-created the original Euphoria in 2012 along with director Daphna Levin.[8] It was motivated by Leshem wanting to create a more realistic show about teenagers and described as "Trainspotting meets Gus Van Sant".[9] The series had a low budget and did not have the resources to film shorter scenes. It also contained cultural specificities relevant to Israelis and received mixed reviews due to adult content for a conservative audience.[10] Over the following years, Leshem pitched an adaptation of the series to American networks and studios. HBO ordered an American adaption in 2018 where Leshem was an executive producer alongside being credited as a writer for the pilot episode.[8][11]

Move to United States, development deals and serial television creation

In early 2013, Leshem moved from Israel to the United States, joining Legendary Entertainment as a development producer.[4] He is based in Boston and has an office in Los Angeles.[12]

Influenced by the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin at a rally in support of the Oslo Accords, Leshem co-wrote Incitement in 2019 as a political thriller profiling Rabin’s assassin, Yigal Amir, and the influences that shaped his decisions. Leshem stated that "it was never a film about 1995...it's about today—how people are losing faith in democracy and how the politics of hate are taking over."[13] He also signed a development deal with Red Arrow Studios International to create scripted dramas.[14][15]

Leshem co-created, co-wrote and produced the French series No Man's Land, which followed female Kurdish fighters as well as three British friends who travel to join ISIS during the Syrian civil war. The series was released on Hulu.[8] He also co-created, co-wrote and produced the Max series Valley of Tears, a mini-series about the Yom Kippur War, which was released in Israel before being picked up by HBO in 2020.[16]

Traitor, an eight-part thriller inspired by the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, premiered in Israel in 2022. Leshem co-created, co-wrote and produced the series that was initially picked up by WestEnd Films in 2017.[17] The next year he co-created, co-wrote and produced Red Skies which takes place during the Second Intifada based on a novel by Daniel Shinar. The series was nominated for the Best Series award at the Series Mania festival.[18]

Leshem has also co-written the Hulu series Fertile Crescent, which focuses on the Syrian Civil War.[8]

In 2023, Bad Boy premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).[19] The drama series was co-created, co-written and produced by Leshem and set in a juvenile detention facility following a boy that is imprisoned who later becomes a comedian.[2] It received seven Israeli Television Academy Awards following its release in Israel in 2024.[20]Netflix acquired the global streaming rights after the TIFF premiere and released the series in May 2025.[21] Upon its Netflix release, Bad Boy ranked within the top ten shows on the streaming platform in May.[22]

Keshet International announced that it would launch Leshem's spy thriller Trust No One on its network, which premiered in March 2025, with a later launch on Netflix.[23] As of its premiere, See-Saw Films was in early-stage development on an English adaptation of the series.[24]

Authorship

As a novelist, Leshem's debut novel Beaufort[25][26] was published in Hebrew in 2006.[26][27] Written in the form of a diary of an Israeli army officer, the book was on Israel’s bestseller list for two years and translated into multiple languages.[28][29][7] He co-wrote a film adaptation of the novel with director Joseph Cedar the next year.[29][8] The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film[30] and won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival.

He published his second novel, The Underground Bazaar, a coming-of-age story told in first-person by a student in Tehran. Leshem said his passion was to highlight similarities between Israeli and Iranian societies. The novel was also a bestseller, translated into several languages and published in France, Germany, Italy, and other countries.[7]

His 2019 novel, When We Were Beautiful (Hebrew: יפים כמו שהיינו), is a coming-of-age story set in Gaza in the late 1990s, with a parallel narrative set in a magical realist version of Latin America. The book was published in Germany and is being translated into English Jessica Cohen.[31]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Credited as
Creator Writer Producer Editor
2011–2013 The Gordin CellYes Yes Yes No
2012 EuphoriaYes Yes Yes No
2015 AllegianceNo Yes[32]Yes No
2015 SpyYes No No No
2013–2015 Beauty and the BakerNo No No Yes
2019–present Euphoria (HBO)No Yes[33][8]Yes No
2020–present No Man's Land[34]Yes Yes Yes No
2020–present Valley of Tears[35]Yes Yes Yes No
2022 TraitorYes Yes Yes No
2023 Red SkiesYes Yes Yes No
2024 Bad Boy[36]Yes Yes Yes No
2024 Trust No OneYes Yes Yes No

Film

Year Title
DirectorWriterExecutiveProducer
2007 BeaufortNo Yes[6][8]Yes
2019 IncitementNo Yes Yes

As development executive

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2006 The Sapir Prize for LiteratureBest Novel of The Year BeaufortWon [27]
Yitzhak Sadeh PrizeBest Novel of The Year BeaufortWon
2007 Ophir Award, Israeli Academy Awards Best Screenplay BeaufortNominated [37]
2008 80th Academy AwardsAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film[38]BeaufortNominated
2012 Israeli Television Academy AwardsBest Drama Series The Gordin CellNominated
Best Screenplay for Drama Series Nominated
Series Mania Festival Forum Des Images[39]Nominated
2013 Israeli Television Academy AwardsBest Drama Series EuphoriaNominated
Best Screenplay for Drama Series Nominated
2014 Israeli Television Academy AwardsBest Drama Series The Gordin Cell (2nd season) Nominated
Best Screenplay for Drama Series Nominated
2019 Ophir Award, Israeli Academy Awards Best Film for 2019 IncitementWon [40]
2020 Series Mania Festival The Official Competition No Man's LandNominated [41]
Valley of Tears[42]Won
British Academy Television AwardsBest International ProgrammeEuphoriaNominated
Israeli Television Academy AwardsBest Drama Series Valley of TearsNominated
C21 International Drama Awards Best Non-English Language Drama Series No Man's LandWon
2022 Emmy AwardsPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama SeriesEuphoriaNominated
2023 Monte-Carlo Television FestivalBest Drama TV SeriesTrust No OneNominated
Series Mania Festival Best Series Red SkiesNominated
Global Indian Film AwardsBest TV Series Red SkiesWon
TV Series Festival Berlin Best TV Drama Red SkiesWon
2024 Buenos Aires International Film Festival Best TV Series Red SkiesWon
2025 Israeli Television Academy AwardsBest Drama Series Bad BoyWon
Best Screenplay for Drama Series Won

References

  1. ^Leshem, Ron. "Ron Leshem on Hamas attack: The little innocence that was left might be dead". Der Freitag (in German). Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  2. ^ abFord, Lily (November 26, 2024). "Israeli Drama 'Bad Boy' From 'Euphoria' Creator Ron Leshem, Hagar Ben-Asher Gets Netflix Debut". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
  3. ^ abנעמה לנסקי. "ראש ענף התנהלות". Haaretz הארץ (in Hebrew).
  4. ^ abלשם, רון (November 28, 2024). ""משנות ה'לא' בחיי למדתי יותר מכל תחנה אחרת"". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  5. ^We-Ha (April 9, 2015). "'Beaufort' Author and Screenwriter to Speak at JCC". We-Ha | West Hartford News. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  6. ^ abRudzki, Justin (December 21, 2007). "Looking for paradise with author Ron Leshem [VIDEO]". Israel 21 C. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  7. ^ abcd"Ron Leshem". America-Israel Cultural Foundation. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  8. ^ abcdefghSun, Rebecca (June 26, 2019). "Original 'Euphoria' Creator Ron Leshem Signs With Anonymous Content (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  9. ^Orlin, Scott (December 1, 2020). "Ron Leshem and Amit Cohen: "Valley of Tears"". Golden Globes.
  10. ^Sarah Sachs; Sasha Tuddenham (August 18, 2022). "Euphoria's Israeli Predecessor Shows that Teen Trauma Transcends Culture". Moment Mag. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  11. ^Porter, Rick (July 30, 2018). "HBO Orders 'Euphoria' to Series, Drake Joins as Executive Producer". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  12. ^"Representing Israel's Top Speakers Authors, Filmmakers, and Cultural Icons". Lion House Agency. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  13. ^Tommy Gillespie (March 3, 2020). "In 'Incitement,' co-writer Leshem sees Israel's political path traced". Tufts Daily. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  14. ^Goldberg, Lesley (June 13, 2019). "James Purefoy to Star in Syrian Civil War Drama for Hulu". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  15. ^Barraclough, Leo (November 12, 2020). "Ron Leshem, Amit Cohen Thriller to Spearhead Anton, WestEnd TV Series Slate". Variety. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  16. ^Steinberg, Jessica (October 14, 2020). "HBO purchases rights for Israeli TV series about Yom Kippur War". The Times of Israel. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  17. ^Stewart Clarke (October 11, 2017). "Mipcom: WestEnd Films Moves Into TV With 'Traitor' From 'False Flag' Creator". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  18. ^קיץ ברבנר (September 2, 2023). "מתוך כ-500 סדרות מ-62 מדינות: "שמים אדומים" מועמדת בפסטיבל היוקרתי". Maariv. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  19. ^Chase Hutchinson (September 13, 2023). "'Bad Boy' Review: 'Euphoria' Creator's New Series Finds Pain & Poetry in Prison". Collider. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  20. ^Max Goldbart (April 3, 2025). "'Bad Boy' & Shira Haas Win Israeli Television Academy Awards". Deadline. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  21. ^Max Goldbart (April 11, 2025). "Netflix Unveils Premiere Date For Israeli Series 'Bad Boy'". Deadline. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  22. ^Rahul Malhotra (May 6, 2025). "Controversial News 'Adolescence' Dupe From 'Euphoria' Creator Is a Streaming Success Story". Collider. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  23. ^Elsa Keslassy; Marta Balaga (February 28, 2023). "Keshet International Boards Israeli Thriller 'Trust No One' From Ron Leshem/Amit Cohen, Among New Scripted Slate". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  24. ^Max Goldbart (March 13, 2025). "See-Saw Films Plotting English-Language Remake Of Israeli Spy Series 'Trust No One'". Deadline. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  25. ^Beaufort, British trade paperback edition. London: Harvill Secker
  26. ^ abSarah Pres, Viva (December 28, 2006). "Right to Left". The Jerusalem Post.
  27. ^ ab"Sapir Prize goes to Ron Leshem". Haaretz. 2006.
  28. ^"Beaufort | Jewish Book Council". www.jewishbookcouncil.org. 2007. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
  29. ^ abLeshem, Ron. "Ron Leshem, Our man in Tehran". Haaretz.
  30. ^"Ron Leshem". The Program in Jewish Culture & Society. September 12, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  31. ^"When we were beautiful".
  32. ^Based on his original series "The Gordin Cell".
  33. ^Based on his original series "Euphoria".
  34. ^Fienberg, Daniel (November 18, 2020). "'No Man's Land': TV Review". Hollywood Reporter.
  35. ^Filming began on spring 2019
  36. ^https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/bad-boy-creator-ron-leshem-who-is-daniel-chen-1236204392/
  37. ^"Beaufort, Academy Awards".
  38. ^"80th Academy Awards Nominations Announced" (Press release). Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. January 22, 2008. Archived from the original on January 27, 2008. Retrieved January 22, 2008.
  39. ^"Forum Des Images, Paris 2020".
  40. ^Caspi, David (2020). "Incitement wins the Israeli Oscars". The Hollywood Reporter.
  41. ^"Leshem's two series entering the Series Mania 2020 official competition". Series Mania. 2020.
  42. ^Hopewell, John (March 25, 2020). "Official SeriesMania Competition 2020". Variety.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ron_Leshem&oldid=1325231519"